Thursday, November 29, 2012

Update: Space Marines Achieved
The number one project on Cuusoo right now is "Space Marines." Will it get to 10k, Yes of course, no question. So why am I wasting your time talking about it instead of some overlooked gem, like the Calamity Jane 2 (see what I did there). The reason is that the current review deadline is this Monday.
Any project that does not reach 10k by Monday will have to wait three more months to even start the review process.

Space Marines accrued 179 votes last week, second only to Female Minifig Set. Unfortunately Space Marines needs to get that many votes in the next four days to beat the deadline.

So, if you have been to Cuusoo you have probably already voted for Space Marines or CHOSEN not too.

For those of you who decided not to, please reconsider. These guys are definitely going to get there, it is simply a question of how many days.

If a simple argument for pushing up the review date does not work on you...I have got a few more to throw your direction:

Vote for the project as a thank you to Nick Royer for his contribution to the Lego Community. You might not know this but Nick has made his minifig models freely available. That's a really cool blender model! All you need to do is learn how to use Blender...

Or Vote as a favor to your fellow Lego fans. 9800 of your compatriots want this to get reviewed. Be a pal and toss the project a vote. It will only take a few minutes...maybe 30 seconds given you already have an account, but it could shave 3 months off their wait.

Its chances?

In the absence of Galaxy Patrol, a Space Marines Cuusoo product would have been a sure thing.
There is no pre-existing IP, there is no concern about Brand Fit or Licensing. Is there a market? Lego has known for decades that Lego and Sci-Fi Space are an awesome combination and will sell. The fact of the times though is that Galaxy Patrol DOES exist. Galaxy Patrol is a very similar concept. Similar enough that it they are "substitutes" and no company wants to compete against itself with substitutes. What does this mean for Space Marines?

Well, this will only be the second totally original project to reach 10k. Lego cannot ignore such an accomplishment completely, so I think they will release something. However, given that Galaxy Patrol will either be in full swing or perhaps even concluding by the time this gets produced, the market will be saturated and the masses will not be clamoring for more combat ready space Lego, so the resulting set will probably be one of the more conservative vehicles presented in the project.
As for the Ugokins, their fabrication is unlikely, at least as they are presented. Lego representatives have made it clear that it is unlikely that even one new part will be produced for Cuusoo sets and the Ugokins require at least two, arguably three. We may get some hybrid though...anyting with four legs would make me ecstatic but chances are low.
Then again, there have only ever been three Cuusoo products ever made so there is not much of a foundation for any of this speculation to stand on.

On the subject of Reviews....What is taking the Review process so Long?

So, I often hear people commenting on how long the review is taking. If you look at the summary of the Review process, the steps that the Lego Group has control over take no more than 8 weeks. Lego cannot however predict or control the amount of time that Licensing agreements take.

Usually people are not privy to this aspect of product creation. This all happens behind the hushed veils of NDAs and only after the dust is settled do product lines get announced. Star Wars came out in 1977 and the first Star Wars Lego set was 1999. Who knows how long that negotiation took?

Working out contracts can take forever and Licensing situations can get really crazy. Eve online openly supported the project so in all likelihood they are on board even if they haggled for a while. Zelda is a bit of an unknown quantity. Perhaps Nintendo is negotiating towards a product that will line up with a 2014 Zelda Wii U release. The largest possible issue however is Back to the Future. I have no idea what the original or existing licenses are but looking at the set there are many potential players in this negotiation.

The two obvious players are the Lego Group and the owners of Back to the Future, Universal Studios. Then there is Marty and Doc, who are played by Michael J.Fox and Christopher Lloyd. Actors get paid for their likenesses. What were their original contracts with Universal? Do they apply to minifigs? Do they get a cut? I am sure their Lawyers would want to argue that they do. Then there is the DeLorean...Does John DeLorean (or whoever owns the likeness of the DeLorean) get a cut? Even beyond that is the Logo! John DeLorean sold the DMC logo to Stephen Wynne, who has an aftermarket DeLorean company...so does he get a cut too? So, that is at least six possible chairs at the negotiating table. Everyone with a stake in the game, or the lawyers to make the argument that they do, have to come to a resolution and that could take...well months.

Ultimately the length of time it takes for these negotiations to get done show the Lego Groups dedication to getting these projects for the fans. If the Lego Group wasn't they could just walk away from the negotiating table and we would have our answers already. In the meantime there are plenty of great sets to keep us happy while we wait, like those new Hobbit ones.

Hot New Project

I don't know why but I have always loved anything based on a hammerhead shark Theme. Most notably the Spelljammer Vessel the Hammership which I built out of Lego and continue to update all the time. So if for no other reason than that, I am biased to love this MOC. Regardless of that, this is an awesome build.

This has fantastic geometries with a nice juxtaposition of long curves and very angular weapons. In addition it has a novel, attractive, color scheme.

Given that it is part of Warhammer 40k, it does not have a snowball's chance of passing review. But I have long since given up not supporting projects that I don't think will pass. I have taken the path of letting them get rejected by The Lego Group than by me.

Cuusoo News

Ambulance (Type 3 / Type III) is the big winner this week going from less than 1 support a day to over 100 support in the last three days. I feel a bit weird posting that because the majority of this support is coming from Brickset, and that is due to an article I wrote there.

Regardless, a big thank you for those who have supported a real gem on Cuusoo.

Not on the List?
First, I tend to cut off projects after a certain day count, usually
10k. Additionally, I only monitor projects that have at least 200.
Projects less than that are a little too volatile for proper
assessment. Finally, I track several weeks worth of data to get these
numbers, so you might not show up until your project has been post 200
for a few weeks.

News

Pick of the Week

This is actually the second 10213 scale space center I have seen. The first being at Brick Fiesta 2012. Both are spectacular. The detailing on the crawler and and the the platforms and gantries and such really sell the amazing complexity that was the shuttle program.

Alas, I would find it hard for Lego to go forward with such a large and intricate build, as I assume that most people supporting this project would not actually shell out for the extreme price break OR footprint. This kind of set owns the room as it extends so far in many directions.

I imagine, like the Minecraft, set that this would get reduced to a more conservative scale. Regardless I would love to own it.

Honorable Mentions

Large scale Venators are quite popular building subjects and as far as realistic production scales go, this is probably the best one I have seen. It has all the greeble you want while not looking overstudded, a prefect blend of tiles and plates.

The fact that the frigate fits in the shuttle base is pretty awesome though I doubt people are going to be getting under this thing too much.

The one fault I have seen on all these large Venators is that they seem to lack Minifig integration like the most recent Star Destroyers. You can call me too demanding but If I am going to have something that big on my shelf I need it to store some figures ;)

I feel a bit damned this week. Only pointing out the extremely large or the space related builds. Well, that is the way to goes sometimes. Regardless. I find this micro build of the Twilight, a Star Wars vehicle, quite charming. The use of turntable element, without the plate, works well for the design. The cockpit element is quite clever too.

Week of Cuusoo

I really can't speak much to this project. I will make that clear. I have not read the series but I have heard about some of the details. There are six Percy project to date and this is certainly the best presented but it still looks like it needs a lot of polish before it could be a legitimate Lego set.

That being said, If this project gets to 10k, Lego designers will supply said polish. So, if you want to see Percy Jackson in Lego, then support the project.

Along with the Titanic, Space Center, and Venator, this project rounds out the four plus sized projects that presented this week.

I like the basic concept of a Santa's Work Shop, and the general form of the building is quite appealing, but this project needs a lot of work on presentation. The scale is so large, this project but I think it is hard to see the details described. Additionally when I talked with I had talked Jimmygiggle about the color scheme they indicated that the color selection as based on parts availability rather than aesthetic intent.

In my opinion, a Cuusoo project is much better off going LDD with the right colors than going real brick with the wrong colors. At the very least it should be mentioned in the project what the desired color scheme is.

Finally, this project claims to be part of the Winter Village collection. Personally I just don't see it. Winter Village does not have any fantastical elements. It is small town in the winter...This is about as fanciful as you can get.

Monday, November 26, 2012

One of my favorite projects on Cuusoo is the Ambulance (Type 3 / Type III)by SpacySmoke. Sure I love all the giant, crazy, over the top sets too but this project is a ideal demonstration of compact elegant design with fully implemented playability.

The First and most obvious reason to appreciate this build is how accurately it recreates a Type III Ambulance.
That might sound a bit mundane but the most recent Lego ambulance, 4431, looks a bit like a generic van with a Hospital logo on it, in my opinion. For example, compare it to the Satellite Launch Pad van from 3366.

This build is unmistakably an ambulance though. An ungainly box shape strapped to the back of a van. The use of the cabinet, grilled bricks, and snotted tiles and plates add a lot of nuance to the build. The cheese wedges above the rear tires are a great touch. The brick based stripe of color going down the middle is a fantastic integration.

What really sells me on this project is the internals though.

The roof of this ambulance is anchored by three studs and can be removed easily to reveal a fully equipped vehicle. There are monitors, drawers, cabinets and instruments all over the the place and yet they appear to be logically situated for use, just like an actual ambulance.

This design not only accommodates all of these features but still has room for a stretcher, patient, EMT, and a worried companion.

To top off the long list of great features, this build uses an innovative design for the doors of the ambulance cabin. Instead of a simple hinge, the doors are connected via a pair of droid arms creating an effective double hinge system.

All in all this project is a fantastic fully featured design that I hope to someday add to my collection. If you like this project I recommend you also check out SpaceySmoke's Food Truck as well.

Its Chances?
Unfortunately this kind of build does not get a lot of support on Cuusoo. In fact, no service vehicle project has every gotten past 500 support. Currently this project accrues less than one support per day.

If it did reach 10k, well, there is very little chance that this would fail the brand fit or market review, as Lego has, as stated before, produced several ambulances. The largest issue would be their willingness to produce a project based on service vehicles, which tend to be its bread and butter in the "City" line. This scenario has not yet come to pass so it would be hard at this time to predict how the Lego Group would respond, but I would hope they would see this as effectively the "UCS" of minifig scale ambulances and produce it.

If you like this project then, by all means, support it. If you REALLY like this project then please support it beyond Cuusoo. This article has many options to help you get the word out!

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Last week's "Cuusoo Review" is a bit late due to the Holiday's. It will be published shortly, sorry for the delay.

Cuusoo News

The Reddit Alien certainly did well for itself last week nailing the number one must supported project. Not explicitly sure where they got the new support, but it can be assumed it is from the Reddit community. (A community that all Cuusoo users should leverage....note this means more than posting on the Cuusoo subreddit.)

The real winner this week appears to be the Female Minifigure Set project.

If you are not familiar with the set I really suggest you check it out, it is certainly worthy of any attention it draws. Independent of any message that you may or may not support, the project has some fantastic vignettes that I would be eager to add to my collection.

Regardless, this project was picked up by the organization"Toward the Stars" which is apparently "The World's Largest Marketplace For Empowering Gifts For Girls". Sounds like a good match for this project. They posted it on their facebook page and a swell of support came flooding in.

Sadly, though not surprisingly, this support did not heavily carry over into Alatariel other awesome project: Mega Man.

Approaching 1k Milestone

At current rates there is a very good chance that Civilizations and Transforming Accessories will pass the 1k mark in the next week. The Rhinoceros, will be around for about five more weeks.

Deadline Review

The next review is December 3rd, 2012...that is 11 days from today. Currently Space Marines is on a linear progression of 13 days so I stand to my previous declaration that they will accelerate to the finish line.

Not on the List?
First, I tend to cut off projects after a certain day count, usually
10k. Additionally, I only monitor projects that have at least 200.
Projects less than that are a little too volatile for proper
assessment. Finally, I track several weeks worth of data to get these
numbers, so you might not show up until your project has been post 200
for a few weeks.

Deadline Review

The next review is December 3rd, 2012...that is 18 days from today. At this point I am willing to call it that Space Marines will make the review. My averages are over a large time frame to smooth out any "blips" of increased support, or inexplicable lack of it. This is good for long term estimates with applied to 99% of what is displayed here. This does mean that the rate is less reflective of very recent trends with the project. It is my speculation that this project will continue to pick up supporters at a greater rate as the deadline approaches...Likely the deadline will even help Space Marines to get concluded early as a "challenge" to energize supporters.

Not on the List?
First, I tend to cut off projects after a certain day count, usually
10k. Additionally, I only monitor projects that have at least 200.
Projects less than that are a little too volatile for proper
assessment. Finally, I track several weeks worth of data to get these
numbers, so you might not show up until your project has been post 200
for a few weeks.